October Training

[godsoffortune]

Who: Everyone
What: Information and Training
When: September 4th
Where: Meeting Hall, the Far Shore
Summary: Training and informational sessions for newly arrived gods and shinki



In anticipation of the latest round of new arrivals, Heaven has partnered with the new gods and shinki to organize a very helpful informational reception.

It seems Bishamon's temple is unavailable this week due to business, although she has generously allowed a number of her shinki to go on with their usual tasks of passing out pamphlets and assisting the newcomers to settle in.

Gods and shinki arriving at heaven's meeting hall are, should they allow it, guided kindly towards a traditional-style dojo and banquet hall towards the back of the meeting hall itself. The gods and shinki are free to take their time during this day to learn about the details of their new life from Amaterasu's shinki or from the many veteran new god and shinki volunteers.




God Training

Newly arrived gods are escorted into a banquet hall for an informational meeting covering the basics of proper god behavior, although the minor deity conducting the meeting is in too much of a rush to take questions afterwards. They are encouraged to discuss the information with each other and ask questions of more experienced gods, as well as instructed to guide their new shinki appropriately.

Shinki Training

Various volunteers are stationed around the dojo, passing out helpful informational pamphlets. There are many shinki, including Bishamon's and Amaterasu's, who will be more than happy to train in using the borderline as well as offering a lecture on the basics of what is expected of a shinki and the importance of teamwork with other shinki and with gods. Shinki are encouraged to work together to practice what they've learned and discuss their perspectives.

The garden is available for borderline practice, and a few of the last training's slightly tattered crayon-drawn borderline targets have been brought back out and pinned to bales of straw to make a practice area. One of Amaterasu's shinki is drawing replacements with a large inked calligraphy brush. His targets are simple but elegant, but somehow, before they make it over to the target bales, they're ending up crayon-scribbled into much brighter colors. Maybe it's the child shinki who are in charge of putting them up? They do seem to be giggling a lot, and Amaterasu's artist shinki is looking more and more annoyed...

Physical Training

The dojo is stocked with a wide variety of practice weapons, traditional and modern, to offer some practice opportunity to gods who, for example, find themselves with a sword shinki but are at risk of cutting off their own toes. It's also useful for veteran new gods wishing to train with their current partner shinki.

There's an additional task that the hosts are more than willing to ask for help with. The Meeting Hall seems to be suffering an invasion of cute soot sprites. Although they're harmless little spirits, they leave smears of ash and soot wherever they go, and the shinki are running themselves ragged trying to keep the hardwood floors and white walls clean! They're handing out cleaning rags and flyswatters to squash the soot sprites flat and scrub the resulting smears away -- and, for the softhearted, butterfly nets: although they implore anyone with a net to be sure they let the soot sprites out again far, far away.

Rest and Refreshments

The meeting hall's facilities are less modernized than Bishamon's: there are rainwater barrels set out by the dojo with fresh towels for hardworking gods and shinki to wash their face and hands. The water is ice cold, so it's very refreshing, too-- brr!

By lunchtime, the banquet hall where the gods' informational session was held has been cleaned out and re-set with cushions to sit on around long, low tables. Gods and shinki who come inside for lunch will be served a plain but hearty meal, with soup, rice, fish and pickled vegetables to refresh them for the afternoon's training.

The hall will stay open even after the lunches and tables have been cleared away, so that those who want a quieter space to talk with their new partners can find somewhere in the room. Hopefully the occasional stampede of soot sprites won't be too distracting.

In Summary:

• Get all the information you can handle
• Veteran new gods and shinki are welcome to volunteer showing the ropes
• Get in some training
• Help catch soot sprite pests
• Spectate if you want
• Have fun~

Comments

[demonsheath]

The catch is that there are more risks without having a partner. The god can also feel intense emotions coming from their shinki, which is where you'll want to read the section about blight in that pamphlet.

[ For some reason, she had an exact understanding of what was meant by 'catch.' ]

It's a mutually beneficial situation, instead of you requesting something and having to pay for it later. You don't have a time limit, or conclusive event to which you have your soul eaten or anything like that.

[hunterofsorts]

[Which is exactly what he's doing - reading over that section as he listens to her but at the way she catches on to what he'd said without saying his focus shifts to her once again. He should be unsettled by this but this depth of understanding is actually comforting to a degree.]

I'll need to think about it a bit. How many gods do you have?

[This news is good. It really is. Eric'll be thrilled at least and maybe Dean can just have these two shinki - one would be good for back up if the other was too busy mooning over his other god - until someone he knew came through maybe? ]

[demonsheath]

[ It's comforting to Dean, but a new thing that Hannah realized she was comfortable with. She couldn't say why 'soul eaten' was her example of what would happen, or how even that was taken to a casual mention. ]

At the moment, I have one. We had a rocky start as well, so I wanted to smooth that out and have a better grasp of this era before offering myself to others. There's safety in shinki having multiple names, from what I've come to understand.

[ Which is actually the sincere truth. She wanted to follow the order she'd been given by William, but with the topic of things like spells, her instincts say to guard against that before it became a problem. ]

If you'd like, I can give you my contact information. That way you won't have to feel rushed into any decisions.

[hunterofsorts]

[Dean nods. That's nice to know but given her willingness to offer herself up isn't exactly comforting. But she could be useful all the same.]

And it's useful for a god to have more than one Shinki they can work with I suppose. In case something happens and one leaves or vanishes - whatever happens here.

[Dean is taking his phone from his pocket, his really one and pulling up his contact set up - offering it to Hannah.] That'd be great.

[demonsheath]

Or when you can't control the shape of the vessel your shinki will take. While some of us turn into weapons, you could just as easily end up with a stapler remover or a scarf.

[ Which is less tragic than a vanishing shinki, but it's clear that he understands the logic. Putting in her information and saving it, she offers it back. ]

While I can't predict what I'll become if you do choose to name me, I can tell you that my vessel form for Mister Spears is a sword; non-standard in design, but still a weapon. If you're unfamiliar with how to use blades or firearms, I'll also be able to assist in guiding your movements for that as well.

[hunterofsorts]

[Dean snorts. Yeah because that'll be his luck and he knows it. He does. He rakes a hand through his hair nodding.]

A Shinki with a weapon form would be a bit more useful yeah.

[Taking his phone he's slipping it into his pocket after curling his fingers around it. He laughs at that giving a shake of his head.]

I'm a more than fair hand with most weapons. It might take me a bit to get used to it but I'd likely be fine. I fight in my line of work so I'm plenty capable.

[demonsheath]

Are you?

[ She doesn't sound particularly surprised, but it's not as if she actually knew before- they never met before this, after all. There were some clues that gave the appearance of that, however. ]

In that case, you're suited against the most common threat that occurs in this situation in a way that many aren't. What does your line of work usually have you fighting, Dean?

[hunterofsorts]

Better with guns and knives than full on swords but I manage just fine.

[Dean considers before folding up that pamphlet and tucking it away in his coat.]

You name it and I've likely fought it. Never killed anything that didn't need killing, I've got my rules.

[demonsheath]

I'll keep that in mind.

[ It's better that someone had rules as to what they could and couldn't kill. Though the qualifier of what 'needed' killing was still up in the air, she wasn't exactly particular about it. ]

So, while this will be your first time hunting ayakashi, you have plenty of experience with creatures similar. You have a unique advantage in this situation.

[hunterofsorts]

Whatever form you might take if it's a weapon I can learn it. It'll be fine. Nothing to worry your pretty head about, Hannah.

[Dean nods at that gesturing with his hands.]

Yeah. Most of what I've fought wore human faces or were once human. There were a few monsters in there - hellhounds and the like. I intend to do what I can to help out. Good people shouldn't be at the mercy of evil and malicious forces. It's something I won't stand for.

[demonsheath]

'Worry'?

[ She echoes that with a touch of scrutiny. If only because, of the few emotions she's had, worry wasn't one of them. Yet she's certainly noticing something that, for a reason she couldn't quite get, was amusing. While a part of it could be called 'righteousness,' there was a different word that came to mind. ]

You've got quite the helping of pride, don't you Mr Winchester?

[hunterofsorts]

I mean it won't be a problem and I won't cause you any trouble when the time comes.

[Dean considers this. He wouldn't say he was prideful. He's just got a job to do. And he's not exactly proud of what he's done. He wars with himself about it constantly. But if that's what Hannah sees it as he'll do nothing to dissuade of that. After all she strikes him to be the kind of person that wouldn't want to follow someone she perceived as weak.]

Maybe a bit. I know what I've done and what I've got to do. I've got purpose and that's enough most days.

[demonsheath]

[ hat's the funny thing about pride- It takes different forms and wasn't as simple as someone having pride in what they do. However there is pride in ability, deciding that there was nothing one couldn't handle or figure out on their own? It wasn't a question of whether Dean liked himself or what he does- confidence in ability was the nature of that sin.

Yet it seemed like the wiser move to keep how she understood 'sin' to herself. ]

Well, when the time does come, you now have my number. We'll see how it goes from there.

[hunterofsorts]

[It's not that Dean thinks he can do it by himself it's that he's had to. Mostly. Without people he trusts around; no Sam, no Bobby. He's just got to make the best of it. He's not unwilling to learn or be taught. He's not that arrogant.]

Yeah. I'll likely text you soon. Just let me get my bearings around here a bit first.

[demonsheath]

Of course. You wouldn't want to rush into anything, after all.

[ Especially with a stranger, when you were still working on things with the shinki you were assigned to. ]

I hope you can come to an understanding with your current shinki as well. Until next time, Dean Winchester.

[hunterofsorts]

Thank you for being so understanding.

[And Dean means that. It's nice. Makes him a bit concerned but it's nice all the same.]

I'm sure we will. Who knows, maybe something will shake itself out. See you soon, Hannah.